The Tower of Babel (sketch) - Wilhelm von Kaulbach

Preparatory sketch for one of Kaulbach's six large murals in the stairwell of Berlin's Neues Museum, built by Friedrich August Stüler from 1843 to 1857 (the building was rebuilt, the paintings having been destroyed in the war). The cycle of paintings, in the style of late Romanticism, was intended to illustrate the development of human culture. It was one of the largest museum painting programs of the 19th century. Execution began in 1847/48 with "The Tower of Babel" at the base of the south wall. The first draft, presented to the King and Berlin Museum Director Ignaz von Olfers, dates from 1844 (now in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp). Further sketches and color sketches, little modified, were produced in 1846/47.